Hi. I just shelled out the money for Windows XP Pro. I currently have Windows ME. After I run the first half of the the installation, and am notified that the computer will restart, installation freezes at the screen saying "Setup is Starting Windows". I have tried installation numerous times, and with two different versions of XP Pro, an OEM version and retail build 2600. I have also gotten to almost this same part of the setup with both versions, only at this stage the Windows symbol fades in, a progress bar oscillates back and forth. And, after that the screen goes blank. Under both of these conditions I have let the computer sit for 20 minutes to a half-hour, but there was no disc activity, and no harddrive activity. I have even tried a fresh install to no avail. I have tried booting from the cd. I tried installing after formatting the drive - didn't work. I tried after installing Windows '98 - didn't work. I tried after installing Windows ME - didn't work. I have removed or disconnected all but the basic amount of hardware necessary for installation, and have run the software/hardware compatibility check option on the XP installation disc. There were no incompatibilities. I know that XP runs on NTFS, and I had formatted for FAT32, but one of the options was to "Upgrade" from ME. Again, installation did not complete. Can someone tell me how I can successfully install Windows XP Pro? I am not unfamiliar with OS installation, and have never had this much trouble with an installation. Thank you.

fdisk and format the drive then use the full version of xp to install it on the clean drive. i was gonna say to uplug printers and cameras and pci cards like modem but you already did it. if you only got upgrades dont install me first just stick the disk in when xp asks to see proof.

If you have a disk manager disk or a startup disk for Windows ME. Go in and remove all the partions on the drive. Then reboot and hold down the delete key and get into the bios. Change the boot sequence to cdrom, etc. , etc. Then the cdrom will boot your windows xp cd and you should be on your way. Dont worry, it will let you set your partions before it starts setting up windows xp.

Could be a memory problem, on one box i upgraded to XP to find out i had one bad stick of ram, on another I had to install the raid drivers first or XP would stop my computer from being damaged, and an ATI TV VE has to be removed on anothr system then I can install XP. And don't forget the bios must be compatiable with XP, a way to increase hardware sales. Good Luck....

The freeze up during a reboot seems to have happened to quite a few people while installing XP. It happened twice to me, but just turning the power button off, and then turning it back on again worked. The installation picked up right where it left off. I did read at one site though that advised to turn the power off for about 60 seconds, then turn it back on.

Hi. I appreciate all the help, but I tried all the relevant suggestions here before I posted. Nothing seems to work. It's really baffling and frustrating. All I can think of that I haven't done yet is try a new harddrive, and maybe a new motherboard.

I am having the exact same problem with my OEM Full Home Version on my Win98SE machine. Did you ever resolve this problem or does anyone know how to get XP to continue/finish the install? I followed ALL of the steps outlined in this thread.